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Maldives: Tips, Tricks, and what others won’t tell you!

Cost – Not all islands are super expensive. You too can have a Maldivian holiday without breaking the bank. For example Gangehi Island and Resort is such place; it is decently priced under $200 – $300 and still beautiful and comfortable. We steered clear of cheaper locations because at some point you do get what you pay for. Make no mistake, this is not a cheap vacation no matter which way you do it, but you have options of paying $5000 per night vs $300 per night.

Male – not an exciting destination. Unless you care to see the local culture up close, you can skip it and head directly to your island.

Transportation between islands – none will tell you the truth about this one. Basically all resorts claim to pick you up from Male and drop you back off. So like us, if you plan to travel to multiple islands they won’t offer a solution to take you from one to the other. Makes sense for the at nearly $500 per person per flight – they know how to make money! What might help is to stay at island that are very close and you can proactively ask before booking if there is a speed boat option. This is what we did for the other two islands – they are close to each other 25 min by speed boat at $75 per person.

Prices – when you are at Male best to use Rufiyah. But at the islands you can use dollars, euros, or credit cards. But beware some islands like Gangehi will charge you in euros, you have no other choice, plus 10% service charge and 8% government tax.

Maldivian food – don’t expect to see it except in a street dive at Male. Resorts serve international fare. Anyhow there is not such a thing as original Maldivian food – it is a fusion of Indian, Sri Lankan, Arab types of foods. This is day 3 – so if we do encounter something different we will certainly tell you and show pictures.